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By JULIA FERRANTE

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 20, 2008

WESLEY CHAPEL - Saddlebrook Resort owner Tom Dempsey and Pasco County officials still are finalizing a management and construction contract for the Pasco National Tennis Stadium.

The Tourist Development Council was slated to review a draft agreement at a special meeting Monday, but the gathering was canceled because the contract is not complete.

"Hopefully, it will be done in a couple of weeks," tourist council chairman Jack Mariano said. "It didn't make sense to have a meeting if we didn't have a draft together."

Mariano wants the tourism panel, which advises the county commission, to weigh in on the contract before it goes to the board.
Assistant County Attorney Jane Fagan, who is working on the contract for Pasco, said the parties are "very close" to agreement. The hope is that hammering out details now will avoid construction delays later.

"We're really down to details," she said. "We just want to make sure it is finalized before it goes to the board."

Plans for the $7.9 million Pasco National Tennis Center include a 5,000-seat stadium, practice courts and related facilities on 24 acres next to Saddlebrook. Dempsey would run the stadium through a nonprofit foundation.

The county commission in 2002 agreed to spend $5.7 million in tourist tax revenue to construct the tennis stadium. The board pledged another $2.2 million to the project in March 2007 after permitting delays and construction cost increases.

Reporter Julia Ferrante can be reached at jferrante@tampatrib.com or (813) 948-4220.

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